Cátacombs. n.s. [from κατὰ and κομβος, a hollow or cavity.] Subterraneous cavities for the burial of the dead; of which there are a great number about three miles from Rome, supposed to be the caves and cells where the primitive christians hid and assembled themselves, and where they interred the martyrs, which are accordingly visited with devotion. But, anciently, the word catacomb was only understood of the tombs of St. Peter and St. Paul; and Mr. Monro, in the Philosophical Transactions, supposes the catacombs to have been originally the sepulchres of the first Romans. Places like these might afford convenient resortments to the primitive christians, but could never be built by them. Chambers.

Cite this page: Johnson, Samuel. "Catacombs." A Dictionary of the English Language: A Digital Edition of the 1755 Classic by Samuel Johnson. Edited by Brandi Besalke. Last modified: October 9, 2011. http://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/catacombs/.

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